An Interview with Marty Bohannon: Part II

In part II of our two-part interview, Marty Bohannon talks with Resistance Magazine about cover bands, the Attic and the Chattanooga music scene.

The Attic, a former Chattanooga bar/nightspot, was a favorite among many locals. Marty Bohannon was a bartender there as well as the booking agent for their vast arrays of live shows. Artists from Andrew Bird to Pat Dinizio of the Smithereens played there. Located on Market Street next to Panera Bread, it resided in the upstairs section of what is now Raw and before that, Buck Wild, the supposed "Coyote Ugly" of Chattanooga.

The Attic closed its doors over five years ago and Chattanooga's music scene has not been the same. Aside from JJ's Bohemia and Barking Legs Theater, only a smattering of small music clubs offer the same high quality music and variety as did the Attic. Many people mourned its loss, and to an extent, still do today. "Businesses come and go. It had a good run. The owners both kind of changed lifestyles from bar owners to family men. They both thought it was time to hang it up. It was a great four years," says Marty.

In a way, the Attic still lives on. At least, it does to Marty. "It was very inspiring to me. I don't think this band would be what it is had that place not existed. I got to meet so many great people and see so many great shows. And it kind of continues, you know, like with JJ's really is the other place now. They're doing something really great down there. It's really cool."

While on the topic of music venues, I asked Marty his opinion about the music scene here in Chattanooga. "I think it's pretty strong. I think we've always kind of exported a lot of our really great people. You know, people finish up school and go away. It's small. It's definitely working. I think it's two totally different appetites and it kind of works on a national scale really...I mean, people you know, the cover bands are so popular because people want to relive a certain memory from twenty years ago or it might be the party place for the weekend and there's a lot of 9-5ers out there who don't have a great appetite for music. They enjoy music but they're not exactly audiophiles by any means. The cover bands I see as tourism. The music I see is art, grass roots. It's a totally different world."

It's not that Marty opposes the cover band industry. In fact, he thinks it's good for the local economy and people who like that particular brand of live music should, by all means, go and enjoy it.

In a way, he feels that the collapse of the record industry has helped a lot of bands work harder to promote their music and even some, re-evaluate their career goals. Instead of waiting on a possible audition from a major record company, many bands like the Bohannons have committed to not only the recording of their own music but to taking a larger part in the PR aspect of the music industry, relying on Internet sites like MySpace and good old fashioned touring to get their names out there. "I've seen it move people to work a little harder. There's all kinds of opportunities and other markets."

For those of us who have lived in Chattanooga all of our lives, it's easy sometimes to take advantage of how much our city has achieved and all of the changes that have been made over the past thirty years. From the downtown revitalization, the boom in our tourist industry and the recent announcement of a VW plant slotted to begin building here within the year, as a city, we have a lot to be thankful for.

As a touring musician and one-time booking agent, Marty has had the opportunity to talk to a lot of musicians who come through Chattanooga. To them, he says, our town is a lot like Asheville, North Carolina."We've hosted a lot of groups who have said a couple of days later that they'd like to come back.To really appreciate it, you've got to get out and see what else is out there."

As for the Bohannons, Marty says it's not about playing for a thousand people. "Becoming recording artists, learning to trust your intuitions, respect from your peers, notoriety from the media. That's really what it's all about. It has a beauty but its real beauty is a hundred of the right people in the right club."

If you missed the Bohannons at JJ's Bohemia recently, don't worry. They'll be playing at the Nightfall Concert Series Friday night, August 15th with headliners, the Whigs. The show starts at 7:00.

For more information, click here: http://downtownchattanooga.org/nightfall/july/